HealthEquity blog

A bipartisan effort in Congress is underway to address challenges under the Affordable Care Act, potentially including big improvements to your HSA.

A stronger HSA is one of several measures Congress is weighing to address rising out-of-pocket medical costs for Americans with health coverage at work, stabilize insurance marketplaces used by those without workplace coverage, and help seniors - both retired and working - to manage medical bills.

On March 5, 2018 the IRS announced that the maximum annual HSA contribution limit for an individual with family coverage in 2018 has been lowered from $6,900 to $6,850. The maximum annual HSA contribution limit for an individual with self-only coverage remains at $3,450. There is also a $1,000 catch-up contribution available to individuals who will be at least 55 years old during 2018.

There is a possibility that this change could be reversed and/or amended. HealthEquity will be following future developments and updating this blog post with more information as it becomes available.

An HSA is a great complement to a high-deductible health plan, especially when factoring in tax savings and other advantages. In addition, savvy users can take advantage of some creative ways to maximize HSA benefits even more through these easy-to-follow tips:

To those who don’t quite understand how HSA-qualified plans work, a high deductible seems daunting. Many may say that they can’t afford the high-deductible and so they select a traditional plan and pay the significantly higher premiums typically associated with it.

Because HSA-qualified health plans have higher deductibles, the burden of upfront medical costs is more immediately apparent to those who have this type of coverage. The plans usually have smaller monthly premiums, but the trade-off is more out-of-pocket expenses before insurance kicks in. While at first, this may be perceived as a negative, knowing you’re on the hook for more of your medical bills may actually push you to find smarter ways to put your HSA dollars to work and save.